This invention relates generally to apparatus for manufacturing food products, and more particularly to an integrated food processing unit wherein various functions such as heating and cooling are combined to form a highly compact and efficient food manufacturing machine.
In the manufacture of food products such as candies, pastries, meat and other preparations, various types of apparatus are used to carry out the required processing steps. Thus heaters are required for cooking; mixers, grinders and choppers are necessary to chop or grind and intermingle the ingredients; and refrigeration and pasturization equipment is needed to cool and preserve the food product.
The material being processed is usually contained in a double-walled vat, the vat being provided with mixers or beaters. The jacket defined by the double wall of the vat surrounds the vat chamber and serves to circulate a liquid whose temperature is such as to raise the temperature of the food material in the vat to a desired level.
The difficulty experienced with existing food processing arrangements in which separate machines at different locations are used to carry out the respective processing functions is that the overall system is expensive, cumbersome and inefficient.
Moreover, a great deal of time is lost in the operation of the system, for it is necessary to transfer from one processing machine to another, as a result of which the manufacturing procedure is complicated and costly.